Awarded the 2021 Pulitzer Prize for best play in Drama, The Hot Wing King premiers at Hartford Stage in association with Baltimore Center Stage on Friday, March 8.
The performance, running through March 24, is directed by Christopher D. Betts, the Joyce C. Willis Fellow at Hartford Stage, and was written by Olivier Award-winning and two-time Tony-nominated Playwright Katori Hall.
Set in Memphis, Tennessee, Cordell Crutchfield confidently preps for the annual “Hot Wang Festival” with his boyfriend Dwayne and their culinary clique, The New Wing Order. With a secret recipe and a fantastic cooking crew, they’re ready to dominate the competition in two days. However, the weekend takes a sharp turn when Dwayne’s troubled nephew shows up and asks to stay with the couple. There’s suddenly more at stake than the contest’s first-place trophy.
“Over the course of one weekend, the fate of the competition — and their relationships — is called into question. Will the crew make it to the festival? Will they make it at all?” reads Hartford Stage’s website.
The performance stars Bjorn DuPaty as Cordell, Calvin M. Thompson as Dwayne, Israel Erron Ford as Isom, Marcus Gladney Jr. as EJ, Postell Pringle as Big Charles, and Alphonso Walker Jr. as TJ.
There will be post-show conversations at Hartford Stage on March 10, March 19, and March 20. There will also be an open captioned performance on March 17 at 2 p.m. and an audio-described performance on March 23 at 2 p.m.
Hot Wing King is a “funny, deeply felt consideration of Black masculinity and how it is perceived, filtered through the experiences of a loving gay couple and their extended family as they prepare for a culinary competition,” reads the Pulitzer Prizes’ play description.
The Hot Wing King originally premiered on February 11, 2020, off-Broadway at Pershing Square Signature Center in Manhattan. The show’s run ended prematurely due to restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The show at Hartford Stage runs for approximately two hours and 10 minutes. Tickets start at $30; discounts are available for students and groups. Learn more and purchase tickets at https://www.hartfordstage.org/the-hot-wing-king
Publisher’s Notes: CT Latino News is proud to partner with Hartford Stage in supporting the state’s Arts and Culture.
